Lamp base and holder



Feb. 18, 1947. E.-B. NOEL 2,415,902

I LAMP BASE AND HOLDER I Filed April 12, 1944 Z'Shegts-Sheet 1 Inventor:

Edw-rd B. Noel Feb. 18, 194?. E. B. NOEL 2,415,902

LAMP BASE AND HOLDER i iled April 1-2, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 lnv'ervbor:

' v Edward B. Noel,

b8 His Atlr rne atented Feb. 18, 1947 UNlTED STATE FATE NT ,orrlea LAMP BASE AND HOLDER Edward B. Noel, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application April 12, 1944, Serial No. 530,667

15 Claims. I

I invention is particularly advantageous for photoflash lamps, that is, lamps comprising combustible material, a supporter of combustion and electric ignition means disposed in an electromagnetic radiation transmitting bulb.- Such lamps emit actinic light useful for photographic purposes.

Photoflash lamps comprising a base which forms part of the lamp bulb or envelope v wall and 1 which is secured and sealed to the neck oi. the

bulb or envelope by an organic plastic are disclosed in copending application Serial No. 461,578, filed October 10, 1942, by J0hn W. Fulton and Alton (3+ Foote, which application is assigned to the assignee of this application. One species of base disclosed in the copending application consists of an electrically insulating organic plast c, has a perforated disc-like bottom web through which the current inleads pass and a cylindrical rim integral with the peripheral portion of the web. The portion of the inleads external to the base constitute electrical contacts.

An object of my invention is to provide a base structure of the above type which is engageablewith diverse types oi holding and connecting" means, or sockets for said base, Another object of my invention .is to provide such a base structure which may be indexed in predetermined position in a holding. means. A further object of my invention is to provide means for holdin my new base. Further objects andadvantages of my invention will appear from the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a side view or a photoflash lamp provided with a base embodyin spectively, in the base,

base in the holder; Fig. l4 is a 2 of another species of holder; Fig. 12 is a similar view, as seen from below, of the holder shown in Fi 11, nd i 1.3 is a sectional view along the line l3--l3 of Fig. 12 and showing in full a lamp side elevational vi w o an ther base embodying my invention nd ins r l n the holders shown in Figs. 4, 9

and 10; Fig. 15 is a top plan view of the base shown in Fig. 14 and Fig. 16 isa similar view or" another species of base of my invention insertable in the holders shownin Figs. 4 to 10.

Refer ing to Fi 1 oi the drawings, the photoflash lamp 20 comprises alight transmitting bulb 2| having a short cylindrical neck 22 extending into and terminating in the cavity of'a base 23. The base 23 acts as a cap for the bulb 2i -to'constitute part of the bulb wall and support a pair of current inlead wires 24 and 25 which pass through perforations or apertures 26 and 21, re-

, Two other apertures 28 and 29 are provided in the web of the base for the end ortion. of each oi the inleads 2t and 25, respectively. The inlead fl and 25 pass through i apertures 26 and 21 to the outside. 01 the 25 base and terminate in the other of said apertures 28 and 29 to prevent rotation of said inleads in 'said base. The exposed portions 30 and BI of I the inleads 24 and 25, respectively, serve as conflash lamp 30.

tact terminals for engagement with the contacts of an electrical circuit including a. source of electrical energy suitable for igniting the photo- The current lnleads' 24 and 25 terminate within the bulb 2| in portions 32 and 33, respectively, of reduced diameter which portions are bridged by a'filament 34 which, when energized, ignites the combustible material deposited in the form of beads 35 on the endportions of the inleads. The bulb 2i preferably contains an oxidizing gas at atmospheric pressure,'or lower, The bulb 21 is made gas tight by an electrically insulating, or-

,ganic plastic 36 which adheres to the bulb neck 22, the inleads 24 and 25 and the base 23 which are thus secured together with the joints between similar to that shown in Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is a top plan view of the base and spring holding member of the socket shown in Fig. 7;-Fig. 9 is a frag-.-

mentary perspective view ,of a holder for a pmrality of my new lamp bases; Fig. 10 is a sectional view along the line Ill-l0 of Fig. 9 and showing in full a base in the holder; Fig. 11 is a ragmentary, perspective view, as seen from above,

them gas-tight as disclosed in the Fulton and Foote application referred to above.

As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, the base 23 comprises a bottom or web portion 31 having a comparatively thickcircular central portion 38 which is slightly smaller in diameter than the inner diam- A rim portion 39 (Fig. 2) is integral with the base web 31 and has an inner cylindrical surface 40 spaced from the periphery of the central portion 38 and of slightly larger diameter than the outer diameter of the .tudinal axis of said cavity of the base 23.

bulb neck 22. An annular groove or recess 4| the base web 31 and the inner cylindrical surface 40 of the base rim 39. As shown in Fig. 2, the apertures 26 to 29 are aligned along a diameter of the central portion 38 of the base web 31 with one aperture 28 in the center of said portion 36 and another aperture 29 in the groove 4|. The contact portions 30 and 3| of the inleads 24 and 25 are thus eccentrically disposed on the base 23. with contact 3| more eccentric than contact 36, as shown in Fig. 1.

The outer surface of the base rim 39 adjacent the base web 31 is square in transverse section and has rounded corners 42 (Fig. 3). This configuration of said surface makes possible the indexing of the base 23 by utilizing the parallel, planar, longitudinally extending surfaces thereof to properly orient the contacts 30 and 3| with the electrical contacts of suitable sockets described below. The part of rim 39 about the mouth of the base cavity has a pair Of arcuate, diametrically disposed, support engaging flanges 43 projecting'in opposite directions from the base 23 in a common plane including the mouth of the lamp accommodating cavity and normal to the longi- The apertures 26 to 29 are in a plane connecting the a most widely separated points on the arcuate edges of flanges 43. The flanges 43 are of sumcient thickness to be rigid and strong enough to withstand the forces exerted thereon by spring socket members or the like. As best shown in Fig. 2 the top, surface of the base 23 has two parallel sides joined by curving ends of the flanges 43. The curved ends of the flanges 43 each extend through an angular distance of approximately 104 degrees measured from the center of the base web 31 to the respective ends of each of the curved flanges.

A base 23 having the configuration described above and shown in the drawings is useful in conjunction with different types of sockets one of which is shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings. Referthat it engages only with the more eccentric base contact 3| in any angular position of the base 23 in the socket. The contact is in the form of the head of a pin having a shank 5| extending through the insulative body 49. The contact 45 is urged toward the mouth of the socket by a spring 52 hearing against the contact 45 and the bottom of a central bore53 in the insulative part 49. The contact 45 is of such size that it engages the more centrally disposed base contact 30 in all possible angular positions of the base 23 in the socket.

The contacts 45 and 46 are provided with current inleads 54 and 55, respectively, which may be included in an electrical circuit comprising a conventional source of electrical energy, such as a conventional flashlight battery, suitable for igniting the photoflash lamp. A manually or automatically controlled switch of conventional type may be included in such circuit.

Another type of socket with which my new lamp base may be used is shown in Fig. 5 and comprises an electrically insulating plate 56 having an aperture 51 of the sameconflguration but of slightly larger dimensions than the flanged portion of the base 23 so that said portion may be I passed throughsaid aperture 51 with its largest dimension in the same direction asthe largest dimension of the aperture 51., After the base 23 has been passed through the aperture 51 it may I be rotated approximately 90 degrees to bring the toward the plate 56 so that the flanges 43 bear against the plate surface portion which they overlap. Thus, the lampbase 23 is retained in the a socket by the clampingaction exerted in a direcring to Fig. 4, the socket comprises a group of resiliently separable fingers 44 annularly arranged for embracing and gripping the flanges 43 of the base, and resiliently yieldinqcontacts 45 and 46 surrounded by the fingers 4'4 for hearing against the contact portions 36 and 3| of the inleads 24 and 25, respectively. As shown, the free end portion of each of the fingers are beveled to form surfaces one of which slopes upward and the other of which slopes downward from a ridge 41 formed at the juncture of the surfaces. The upwardly sloping surfaces of the fingers 44 engage the curved flanges of the base as it is inserted into the sockets so that the fingers 44 are spread outward as the base is thrust into the open mouth of the socket. As the flanges 43 are moved past the ridges 41 the downwardly sloping surfaces engage the base flanges 43 so that the force exerted in the direction of the socket center by the resilient, spread fingers 44 tends to retain the base 23 in the socket with the contact portions 30 and 3| bearing against the base contacts 45 and 46, respectively. The contact46 is a. ring formed by the end convolu tion of a helical, metal wire spring mounted on the reduced end 48 of the electrically insulative part 49 of the socket. The portion of part 49 adjacent its end 48 is surrounded and gripped by a solid walled shell 50 integral with the spring fingers 44. The ring contact 46 is of such radius tion parallel to the longitudinal axis of the base 23. If plate 56 is of metal, one of the contacts 58 or 59 iselectrically insulated therefrom.

The free end portions of the contacts 58 and 59 have aligned grooves 66 and 6|, respectively, which engage with the aligned contacts 30 and 3| of the base 23 to resist any tendency of the base 23 to rotate in the socket. The portions of the contacts, 58 and 59 between the grooves 69 and 6| and the free end thereof slope away from the plate 56 so that the contacts may slide into the grooves easily as the base is rotated. A stop 62 may be provided on the contact 59 by punching up a projection adjacent the groove 66 as shown in Fig. 5. The leaf spring contacts 58 or 59 may be made double as shown in Fig. 6 with one leaf 63 disposed between the contact 59 and the plate 56 and having a square end terminating adjacent the groove 6| to engage base contact 3| and thus to serve as a positive stop for the base 23.

The above described sockets retain the lamp base 23 by engaging with the contact terminals 30 and 3| and the base flanges 43. In Figs. 1 and 8 is shown a socket which retains the base 23 by engaging with the straight sided portions of the base so that the base 23 may be thrust therein and retained without the need for rotation. The socket comprises an insulating body 64 which has an aperture similar in shape and size to that shown in Fig. 5 and spring contacts 65 and 66 which are in the form of straight strips without the grooves and bevelled portions of the contacts 58 and 69 of Fig. are bolted to the body 64. The contacts 65 and 66 are disposed transverse to the largest diameter of the aperture. A pair of straight .wire spring members 6'! and 68 are disposed in slots 69 and 10, respectively, in the opposed surfaces of the body 66 constituting the straight sides of the aperture. The wires 61 and 68 are held in cavities H in the body 66 partially in and partially out of the slots 69 and so that when the base 23 is thrust into the socket the wires are pushed back into the slots 69 and lil, as indicated in broken lines in Fig. 8, to allow the base 23 to pass. After the base has passed the wires 61 and 68 spring back to their original position to engage the straight edges of the slot and the base (Fig. 7) as the latter is urged by contacts 66 and 66 toward the mouth of the aperture. Thus, the base 23 is retained in the socket. The base 23 may be removed by pressing it downward, tilting it slightly to pass by one wire 67 and 68 and then tilting it in the reverse direction to pass the other wire.

The outer surface portion of the base 23 between the web 37 and the flanged portion and which is square in transverse section is useful for indexing the base in proper position in a holder for a plurality of lamps, such as that shown in Figs. 9 and 1,0. Th holder shown in these figures comprises a spring strip 12 of metal having its longitudinal edge portions 13 and i6 bent back so as to be parallel with thecenter portion 15 of the strip with the said edges 13 and is spaced sufficiently to form a slot which accommodates the square portion of the base 23 as shown in Fig. 10. The central portion 15 of the strip 12 has a plurality of aligned keyhole slots 16 having a straight sided opening Tl aligned with the slot between edges 73 and M and an elongated aperture 13 transverse to the length of the strip 75. The aperture 18 is of such size and shape as to permit passage of the base 23 therethrough. When the base 23 is inserted into said aperture T8 the square portion of the base 23 enters the slot defined by said edges 13 and M and the flanges d3 of the base 23 rest on the inner surface of the edge portions 73 and it. The portions of the strip 72 adjacent the opening ll having straight edges are shaped so as to form a cavity or depression to accommodate the base flanges 33, as shown in Fig. 10. The strip 12 is sufiioiently elastic, resilient or springy so that the flanges 43 of the base 23 may be manually pressed against the edge portions 13 and M to separate these from the center portion l5'of the strip 72 a sufficient distance to permit moving thebase 23 longitudinally of the strip 12 until gaging with the square portion of the base 23.

Thus, the base contacts 30 and 3t are indexed properly in the strip 12 and are retained flrmly therein for engagement with energizing contacts which may be aligned with the slot between the lower edge portions l3 and i l of the strip '72.

After the lamps 26 have been flashed they are to? readily removable from the strip 72 by the same method, that is, by first causing the ed e portions 13 and 16 to flex and then moving the base 23 into aperture 18. Unilashed lamps may then be mounted in the holder or strip it in the man ner described above.

The holder illustrated in Figs. 11 to 13 of the drawings is similar to that shown in Figs. 9 and 10 except that an elongated aperture 'llisimilar in shape to the top of base 23 extends longitudi-' nally of a strip 8|] and the edge portions 8| and 82 of the strip 8|! has a square depression 63 (Fig. 12) approximately the size of the square portion of base 23. The sides of the depression 83 engage the lower straight edges of the base 23 to prevent relative longitudinal and rotary displacements between the base 23 and the strip 86. l The lamp 20 is mounted on the strip ill) by inserting the base 23 through the aperture l3, forcing the base 23 against the lower edge portions 8! and 62 to separate said portions suficiently to permit rotation of-the base 23 so as .to move the base flanges 43 under the portion-s of the strip adjacent the straight edge of the aperture 19 as shown in Fig. 13. The edge portions 8| and 82 may be slit transversely, as shown at M, on either side of the depressions 83 to facilitate insertion of base 23 by reducing the resistance to rotation of said base 23. The base 23 is retained in the strip 80 with the contact terminals 30 and 3| in proper position for engagement with contacts of an energizing circuit as said base terminals are moved into and out of engagement with the circuit contacts. The lamp 20 is readily removable from the holder or strip 80 by rotating the base 23 to index the flanges 63 with the aperture 19 and lifting the lamp 20.

The holders described above may be used in conjunction with apparatus for igniting the lamp simultaneousl or in sequence. Such apparatus may be arranged to provide a multiplicity of flashes in rapid sequence to enable a photographer to take a series of pictures in a short time without handling each photoflash lamp individually. The holder carrying a plurality of lamps avoids such individual handling of lamps after they have been inserted in the holder.

The base illustrated in Figs. 14 and 15 of the drawing is similar to that illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 except that the holder engaging flanges 63 -are coplanar with the outer surface of the base web 31 and the square base portion is disposed. between said flanges 43' and the mouth of the base cavity.

The base illustrated in Fig. 16 is similar to that shown in Figs. 14 and 15 except that the flanges 63 are circular arcs, the bottom of the base is c rcular and the top of the base about the cavity mouth has but two straight parallel, planar surfaces for indexing purposes.

The base described above and shown in the drawings, since they may be indexed into predetermined position in a holder, are advantageous for facilitating the insertion of the currentinleads therein in the high speed manufacture of lamp for which they are used.

In my copending application Serial No; 530,666, filed April 12, 1944, I have disclosed andjclaimed a lamp holder similarto those shown in Figs. 9 to 13 of this application and described and shown an apparatus for accommodating the lamp holders. The lamp holder of my application Serial No. 530,666 accommodates the lamp base disclosed in the Fulton and Foote application Serial No.

461,578 referred toabove.

4 projections.

In my copending application Serial No. 530,668, filed April 12, 1944, I have described and claimed a multiple flash lamp device accommodating the flat side surfaces.

2. A lamp base comprising a shallow cupshaped shell having a substantially circular interior, the exterior of said shell being formed with flat parallel surfaces on opposite sides thereof for indexing the base in a socket, and means to locate a pair of spaced contacts on the bottom of said shell in a line bearing a predetermined relationship to the planes including said fiat side surfaces and socket-engaging projections extending transversely from the said flat side surfaces.

3. A lamp base having a shallow. circular, lamp accommodating cavity, an external surface portion approximately square in transversesection and support engaging projections offset from said square surface portion and extending transversely in opposite directions from said base.

a 4.- A lamp base having a shallow, circular,lamp accommodating cavity, an external surface portion approximately square in transverse section and support engaging projections offset from said square surface portion and extending transversely in opposite directions from said base, the bottom of said base having a plurality of current inlead accommodating apertures aligned in a plane including the most widely spaced portions of said 5. A lamp base having a shallow, circular, lamp accommodating cavity, an external surface portion approximately square in transverse section and support engaging flanges offset from saidv square surface portion in the direction of the mouth of said cavity and extending in opposite directions from said base.

6. A lamp base having a shallow, circular, lamp accommodating cavity, an external surface portion approximately square in transverse section and support engagingflanges offset from said square surface portion in the direction of the web of said base and extending in opposite directions from said base,

7. A lamp base having a shallow, circular, lamp accommodatin cavity. an external surface portion approximately square in transverse section and,support engaging flanges offset from said square'surface portion, disposed in a common plane including the mouth of said cavity and extending in opposite directions from said base, said flanges having an arcuate edge extending through an angular distance of approximately 104 degrees measured from the center of said circular cavity.

8. In combination, a lamp comprising a base having an exterior surface portion approximately square in transverse section and outwardly projecting, planar flanges offset from said square base portion and a holder for said base having elastic means engaging said base and exerting force longitudinally thereof to retain the base in the holder, said holder also having an aperture of approximately the same shape as the surface of said base including said flanges and of larger size than said surface so that the entire base maybe passed therethrough for engagement with the elastic means of said holder.

9. In combination, a lamp comprising a base having an exterior surface portion approximately square i:. transverse section and outwardly pro- Jecting, planar flanges offset from said square base portion, the bottom of said base-having exposed electrical contacts and a holder for said base having an aperture of approximately the same shape as the surface. of said base including said flanges and of larger size than said surface so that the entire base may be passed therethrough for engagement with said holder, said holder also having resilient, base contact engaging contacts juxtaposed to said aperture for exerting a holding force longitudinally of said base.

10. In combination, a lamp comprising a base having-an exterior surface portion approximately square in transverse section and outwardly projecting, planar flanges offset from said square base portion, the bottom of said base having exposed electrical contacts and a holder for said base having an aperture of approximately the same shape as the surface of said base including said flanges and of larger size than said surface so that the entire base may be passed therethrough for engagement with said holder, said holder also having resilient, base contact eng ing contacts provided with grooves to prevent rotation of said base in said holder, said contacts being juxtaposed to said aperture and exerting a holding force longitudinally of said base.

11. In combination, a lamp comprising a base having an exterior surface portion approximately square in transverse section and outwardly pro- .iecting, planar flanges offset from said square base portion and a holder for said base having, an aperture of approximately the same shape as the surface of said base including said flanges and of larger size than said surface so that the entire base may be passed therethrough for engagement with said holder, said holder also having spaced edge portions juxtaposed to said aperture and defining a slot accommodating and engaging the square portion of said base to prevent rotation of said base in said holder.

12. In combination, a lamp comprising a base having an exterior surface portion approximately square in transverse section and outwardly projecting, planar flanges offset from said square base portion and a holder for said base having an aperture of approximately the same shape as the surfac'e of said base including said flanges and of larger size than said surface so that the entire base may be passed therethrough for engagement with said holder, said holder also having a square indentation juxtaposed to said aperture and accommodating and engaging the square portion of said base to prevent rotation of said base in said holder. a

13. A holder for a lamp base comprising a cupshaped shell having top and bottom surfaces of different configuration, said holder comprising a member of resilient sheet metal having opposite edge portions folded over its center portion and disposed in a common plane spaced from and parallel to the center portion with the adjacent edges slightly separated, said center portion having a base receiving aperture opposed to the space between said edges, said sheet metal member having also inwardly opening, shallow'depressions conforming in. shape and engageable with 9 one of the said surfaces of said base for indexing said base in said holder.

14. A holder for a lamp base'comprising a oupshaped shell having top and bottom surfaces of different configuration, said holder comprising a member of resilient sheet metal having opposite edge portions folded over its center portion and disposed in a common plane spaced from and parallel to the center portion with the adjacent edges slightly separated, said center portion having a base-receiving keyhole slot opposed to the space between said edges, said sheet metal memher having also inwardly opening, shallow depressions at the Sides of the smaller end or said keyhole slot and'conforming in shape to and engageable with the top of said base for indexing said base in said holder.

15. A holder for a lamp base comprising a cupshaped shell having top and bottom surfaces of difierent configuration, said holder comprising a 20 member offlresilient sheet'metal having opposite edge portions folded over its center portion and disposed in a common plane spacedtrom and parallel; to the center portion with the adjacent edges slightly separated. said center portion having a base-receiving aperture opposed to the space between said edges, said sheet metal member having also inwardly opening, shallow depressions in said edges opposite said base-receiving aperture and conforming in shape to and engageable with the bottom of said base for indexing said base in said holder.

. EDWARD B. NOEL.

nmnnncns CITED The following references are of record in the file or this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,165,952 Alsrom,.Jr. July 11, 1939 1,987,427 Watson Jan, 8, 1935 

